Vt. roadside memorial tallies Iraq war deaths

[unhappycamper]

Vt. roadside memorial tallies Iraq war deaths
By John Curran, Associated Press | September 3, 2007


WAITSFIELD, Vt. - Every time a GI is killed in Iraq, a flag goes up in Vermont.

Nearly two years after it was installed, a roadside memorial made up of tiny white flags, arranged like cemetery gravestones under a sign that reads "American Military Killed in Iraq," continues to bloom.

The memorial - in a field of wildflowers along a rural two-lane road - was established by a group of peace activists intent on reminding people about the bottom line of war. Its caretakers add a flag and change the numbers on the sign to reflect the new total - 3,723 as of last Tuesday - as the death toll grows.

"We put it here because we wanted a way to have the cost of the war be visible to everyone, however you happen to feel about it," said Russ Bennett, a 56-year-old builder who was among the organizers. "You become inured to the number. It's like the national debt. It doesn't mean anything to you anymore. "

Such memorials have sprung up elsewhere, but usually on a temporary basis. Sometimes, they elicit backlash.

This one - which has no official name - got its start in October 2005, when Bennett installed one like it on the lawn of the Vermont State House in Montpelier as part of an antiwar rally.


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uhc comment: Evidently, there are a few folks in Waitsfield who disagree. Here's a LTTE dated 7.14.2006.


Great concern for the message sent

July 14, 2006

To The Editor:

(This letter is addressed to the keepers of the White Flag Memorial for soldiers killed in Iraq.)

I send you this letter with great concern for the message you send in a field not far from my home. It deeply saddens me that over this Fourth of July weekend, our nation's most symbolic tradition can be so easily disgraced by a simple and careless act of negligence.

In a family and tradition such as the military, steeped in sacrifice, honor and symbolism, your political statement (a death toll, in a tally fashion reminiscent of a past war, complete with surrender flags) posing as a tribute to our nation's fallen troops is a shallow façade, especially when you leave our flag to drape repeatedly on the ground for the past month, which clearly shows blatant disrespect.

This action brings disgrace to you, your business, your community and all who support your so-called memorial. I love this nation and served to protect it. If you cannot pay tribute to our fallen, with honor, selflessness and at least integrity, don't do it at all!

I urge you to take this flag to the VFW and have them ceremoniously dispose of this flag as called for in protocol.

Lucas Harrison

Waitsfield

[madame defarge]

1. I love Vermont...

We're thinking of retiring there. Stories like this encourage me even more. (Yeah, every state has its RWnuts, but my understanding is that the majority of the people in VT are fairly liberal.)